Draven looked around and noticed several policemen in light blue uniforms surrounding the place. It was unknown how many were still outside waiting for him.
"Sorry, but I don't understand what you are implying here. Just because you found six dead bodies in my house, does that mean it was me who did it?" Draven asked back calmly.
The burly man laughed coldly. "You slipped out of our hands many times, but this time it will not happen. We have an eye witness who was involved in the incident."
"That's a new twist. Where is this so-called eye witness? I am curious to see what he looks like," Draven asked in a mocking tone. He was sure that there was no one who could be an eye witness at that time. This only meant they were framing him.
The burly man signaled with his eyes, and a policeman brought an old man in casual dress forward. This man looked average with a lean frame and sunken eyes.
"This is James. He was among the merchants who came to your house to sell a White Demon Wolf skin for your sister to make a premium armor. But due to your greed, you tried to kill all of them and snatch all their goods for yourself. Only this man escaped since he was at the Ascendent Realm," the burly man announced loudly as though he was reading Draven's crimes to the world.
But Draven did not even look at him. His eyes locked onto the old man's for a moment before a small smile broke out on his face. "Is that true, 36th Regional Head of the Ghost-Faced Assassins?"
The old man's expression changed when he heard Draven's words. Even the police officers who were there looked equally shocked. All of them turned to the old man with fear in their eyes.
The Ghost-Faced Assassins are the secret army trained by the Stonewill family. Each stronghold where Stonewills have influence can only have one head of these assassins, the strongest among them. Just by looking at the reaction of the police and the people around, it was not difficult to guess how infamous this position is.
James cracked his neck and freed himself from the hold of the policeman who was holding him. He then walked forward and bowed before the burly police man. "I will give you a hand in capturing this demon. We Stonewills cannot stand this person's cruelty. I request Inspector Phil to accept this humble old man's offer."
Phil came back to his senses and nodded hurriedly. "Please lend us your help, Elder."
"Enough with the drama," Draven said. "Let me get straight to the point. I want this old man. The rest of you can either run as far away from this place as possible, or you can go against me. It is up to you." Draven looked at the people surrounding him with a light smile.
But all the police officers exchanged glances and stood there with serious looks on their faces. This time they had more than twenty Ascendent Realm cultivators with them. Why would they be afraid of a mere Mortal Realm brat?
Draven's face darkened when he saw this. With his reputation in the 36th stronghold, he thought at least some of them would run away in fright. But contrary to his expectation, no one moved even an inch.
With a cold snort, he unleashed his aura to its maximum. The illusionary form of the True Mountain King appeared behind him, and imitating Draven like a shadow, it gazed at the people around it with its amber eyes.
The Butcher Heart Sutra was also unleashed, filling the room with a thick scent of blood and a deep fear of death.
When both of these two techniques were combined, it was as though Draven had transformed into a savage lion king who could make its prey tremble with its presence alone.
All of the Mortal Realm cultivators in the Hunter Association fell to the ground in fear. Only the Ascendent Realm cultivators managed to hold their ground against Draven's aura, though even their bodies shivered uncontrollably from the bone-chilling killing intent radiating from the True Mountain King behind Draven.
With slow steps, Draven walked towards the old man James, who still stood there like a mountain without any sign of fear.
When they were one meter apart, Draven stopped and stared at the old man for a while before speaking. "I do not feel any threat from you. That means you are not much stronger than me. But you are still standing your ground against me, which means you are not so simple either."
James stared back expressionlessly. "My current cultivation is only at the 6th stage of the Ascendent Realm. But once I used to be at a level which a brat like you cannot even imagine. If you think you can scare my old bones with these petty tricks, you are truly naive."
Draven lifted an eyebrow in surprise. "So you are someone with a story. But I am not interested in it. What I want from you is an answer, and if the answer satisfies me, you are free to go."
"You are giving me an offer?" the old man asked with disdain on his face. "But since you are going to die today, I will tell you what you want to know. In return, I also expect a few answers to my questions."
Draven did not mind the old man asking him questions since he was going to decide what he would say and what he would hide. Taking a deep breath to calm his emotions, he asked a question he had buried deep inside his mind. "Ten years ago, you came to our house and introduced yourself as the 36th regional head of the Ghost-Faced Assassins of the Stonewill family and bought ten of my mother's paintings from us."
"But that very night my mother was bitten by a Jade Blue Bee. Such a demon beast could not enter the 36th stronghold unless someone brought it here. My question is simple: are you the one who brought it here? If yes, on whose demand?"
James did not hide anything and nodded his head. "I was the one who brought it there. But on whose demand, that is confidential. I can tell you this much: it is not the patriarch of the 36th Stonewill family."
Draven nodded his head expressionlessly.
Seeing this, James continued, "I have two questions for you. First, how did you recognize me? When I visited your house I was wearing a ghost mask and you were just a seven-year-old brat with no cultivation. Second, why are you so strong despite being only at the Mortal Realm?"
Draven replied with the same expressionless face. "I have a keen perception of aura. I remembered your aura back then. As for your second question, I can only say it is talent, not anything special."
James snorted. He clearly did not believe Draven's answer, but Draven ignored him and asked, "One last question: whom do you work for?"
James shook his head. "I cannot answer that question. But it is surely not for the Stonewills. Those weaklings do not even have the right to lift my shoes."
Draven stared at him dead in the eye and asked once more, "I repeat my question: whom do you work for?"
James folded his hands behind his back and did not reply.
Bang!
Before James could understand what was happening, a solid punch landed on his abdomen, making him fly backward. But before he could even process it, Draven appeared before him and pinned his head to the ground with a single motion.
"Playtime is over, old man," Draven snarled, the pressure on James's skull increasing. "You are not the first man I've put in the ground. Do not expect a merciful heart to suddenly beat in my chest."
Next second, Draven's Chaos Divine Ape bloodline activated on its own. His purple eyes turned a blazing ruby red, and even without an elemental core, red lightning crackled around him, increasing the pressure on James tenfold.
Even though James tried to struggle free, he found himself locked to the floor by a pair of iron-like hands. He was sure that with a little more pressure his head would burst apart like a watermelon.
Fear of death finally filled his mind. With a shaky voice he shouted out, "Young man, we can talk this through! The people behind me are not someone you can provoke!"
Draven did not respond, but his eyes turned completely red and he pressed the old man's head even further as though he was going to squash it. Even though the old man pleaded many times, Draven did not show any sign of stopping.
"She is not your real mother! Why do you want to put your life under such a great risk for her sake?" the old man finally called out in frustration and helplessness.